Defeated heavyweights on the comeback trail

Moses Itauma has been lying low since his stoppage defeat to Filip Hrgovic in August. His bid to become the youngest heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson ended in the 9th round, when he ran out of gas.

The young British prodigy is now getting back in the groove, but not in his normal gym. He's been spotted in Floyd Mayweather's boxing club in Las Vegas, training alongside American super featherweight prospect, Zaquin Moses, and the pound-for-pound star, Shakur Stevenson.

Moses has changed his scenery, but he stressed that he will be retaining the services of trainer Ben Davison. Davison is having a very poor run of results recently, with his heavyweight charges, Itauma, Joshua and Wardley, all suffering devastating losses.

All three of them refused to blame Davison for their defeats.

But both Joshua and Itauma decided to gather experience elsewhere, to compliment Ben's teachings. Joshua joined Oleksandr Usyk's training camp for a while, and now Moses is seeing what he can learn in Floyd's gym. 

Moses is someone who needs fresh stimulation, so this change in his routine is probably a good thing. Let's hope he can incorporate a new regime that will improve his stamina. If he can do that, it's hard to imagine him getting beaten again anytime soon.

Also on the comeback trail is Joseph Parker, the popular New Zealander who was suspended for failing a drugs test, following his defeat to Fabio Wardley last October. Parker was on the cusp of a world title shot at the time, but it was Wardley who took over his mandatory position and then found himself elevated to full WBO champion after Usyk vacated. 

Parker will be anxious to get back in the mix as quickly as possible, and may have an opportunity on the Fury vs Joshua undercard in December against Britain's Frazer Clarke.

Two years ago, it looked like Frazer's career might be over, when he sustained multiple fractures to his jaw from a devastating right hand from Fabio Wardley. He's lost a couple of close decisions since then, to Jeamie TKV and Justis Huni, but is slowly rebuilding under his new trainer, Joe Gallagher. In a reversal of fortunes, he would almost certainly be the favourite if a trilogy fight with Wardley were to happen.

Finally, there is Britain's Lawrence Okolie. Like Parker, he's recently been cleared after failing a drugs test. Before his suspension, he was highly ranked by the WBC and in line for a shot against Agit Kabayel. He will now have dropped down the rankings.

But Okolie is in the fortunate position of being promoted by Frank Warren. Warren has many of the best heavyweights in his stable and effectively controls the division. As long as Okolie has Warren on his side,  he can keep his dreams of championship glory alive.